Heroes of the New Day

What began as a simple journey has turned into so much more...

Dambrath

Known as the “land of the sun” by any who speak of it, Dambrath is also called the nation of second chances. Their open citizenship allowances and their theocratic rule by the servants of Pelor are hard to miss. If you’re looking to do anything related to holy sun power, Dambrath is the place to find folks who can do it for you. There are a disproportionate number of Deva and Genasi in Dambrath, though there are plenty of humans. All other races are represented here (including races oft’ labelled as “evil”, like drow, tieflings, half-orcs, orcs, gnolls, minotaurs, etc.). The deva are often priests, and seem to be trying to rise back to their angelic roots. The genasi are just as pious, though with different motivations: they are trying to rise above their primordial roots and prove that they are devoted servants of the True God who shines on all.

Capital City: Solaria. The high priestess of Pelor in Solaria, a deva, takes the title of Pope(ss) of Light, and resides in Solaria. The Prime Minister of the nation, who manages most day-to-day affairs with a council of representatives, is technically beholden to the Pope, too.

Industry: Dambrath benefits from a great many natural resources, including mountains full of coal, forests full of trees, and fields that grow strong with crops under the perfect sunlight. Overall the population of Dambrath is relatively well-to-do, and the mandatory education in reading and writing that the church institutes (as well as the “guiding hands” of the church in most every industry) make the national wealth level fairly high. There are also a good number of citrus fruit trees in Dambrath, and it is a major export and feature in many of their dishes.

Politics: The theocratic rule of the church is pretty absolute in Dambrath, and allows for a much stronger and absolute rule than nations that have competing political factions. Much of this has to do with the presence of the Monasteries of the Sun, where psionic power is seen as a gift from the sun. This has had the side-effect of convincing the populace that the servants of the Solar Church can read their minds. This sort of underlying fear has created a chilling effect that has caused many to avoid worshipping other gods. The often public executions of those who break their loyalty oaths also contribute to that.

Religion: While officially every other faith is welcome in Dambrath, it is interesting to note that very few of them are actually worshipped in large numbers. While the Pope of Light claims the authority of Pelor, she does not actually have any true claim over churches of Pelor in other nations. Dambrath has given her complete authority, though the other archdioceses in other nations have yet to fall in line.

In addition, there is a semi-secret group that worships here. They are the church of Lathander, the Morninglord, and they do all they can to mainstream themselves into the rest of Pelor’s faithful. They know that the Solar Church cannot read their thoughts, and so it’s not hard for them to repurpose their sun symbols to be Pelor symbols whenever the eyes of Pelor’s church are upon them. While homosexuality is not technically illegal in Dambrath, it’s looked down upon as immoral by many, hence the Lathanderans’ secretive existence.

Places of NoteAcademy of Solar Studies. Located near Solaria, this is a large temple to Pelor with a basement devoted to Ioun (the library). The goal of the monks at this massive structure is to learn all there is to know about the sun, and to learn ways to spread the sun’s influence to every dark corner of the world. The majority of Sun Blades that exist on the planet are created here.

The All Races Bar. In the midst of Solaria is a large bar that caters to all. It is known to serve brews native to every race that visits. The proprietors, a group of 3 Shardminds, are said to believe that their mission is to bring all races of the Prime Material Plane together to fight the oncoming threats from the Far Realm. The large bar typically serves around 1000 people at a time, so it’s also a great place to meet folks from most any racial faction.

Babylon. Buried in the mountains in the northwest corner of the nation, this is the largest mining town in the nation. Many who are “still on their path to the sun” are brought here to work the coal mines so that they will appreciate the sun more.

Monastery of the Setting Sun. While there are perhaps 50 places with this name across the nation, they each teach a particular martial arts style that focuses on slaying the undead with radiant fist and foot.

Temples of Noon. Again, there are a great many places with this name across the nation (98 at last count), but each is said to hold holy relics of the faithful of Pelor.

Verdant Fields. A mid-sized town in the northern part of the nation, the fields and forests outside of this town are where the nation’s druids meet every season to discuss matters of importance. It goes without saying that they meet beneath the holy Noonday Sun of Pelor. The town is mostly farmers and gardeners, and there is also a professional gardening school located here. Racially the town is a mixture, though more elves and foresty races might be found here.

Famous PeopleSolei Shemesh. Deva, female. Popess of Light. The highest religious and political figure in the nation. She dwells in the Eternal Radiance temple in Solaria. She has written many books espousing her beliefs in forgiveness as the ultimate virtue. However, this can occasionally be at odds with practiced church policy, so there are occasional ambiguities between what the Popess has said and what some of the priests practice.

Council of Cardinals. A collection of 24 high clergy of Pelor. They represent various regions of the nation. Most Cardinals have opulent homes in both Solaria and their home district. There are known political factions within the Council, and there are rumors about possible discrepancies between their edicts and the will of the Popess, though who can know for sure what goes on behind closed doors, where the sun may not shine…? There are not only clerics among the Cardinals, but also druids, martial art masters, and paladins.

Lord Ettengill Morgenstern. Human, male. The elected Prime Regent of Dambrath. Manages the day-to-day goings on of the nation, though he is beholden to the Council of Cardinals and to the Popess herself.

Enoch Root. Wilden, male. The highest-ranking druid in the nation, Enoch is most notable for his hermit nature. He has thrice refused a place on the Council of Cardinals, and is frequently near impossible to find, and not entirely sociable when he is found.